Americans Are Giving Up on Retirement By Brian O'Connell - 10/24/13 - 11:00 AM EDT
NEW YORK (TheStreet) -- The U.S. government managed to avoid a government shutdown -- for now -- so now Americans can turn their attention from the economic dysfunction in Washington, D.C, to their own financial picture.
Unfortunately, a study from investment banking giant Wells Fargo says adults heading into their post-working years face a financial shutdown of their own.
Many middle-class Americans seem to be losing hope over any resolution to their retirement problems. A full 37% of middle-income Americans told Wells Fargo researchers that they will "never retire," but will "work until I'm too sick or die."
Left unsaid is that there is no guarantee their employers will keep them on the payroll until they're 70, 80 or 90 years old.
Nervous workers have seen this story before. The Employee Benefits Research Institute, in particular, has a thorough look at the bleak retirement picture, noting that 49% of Americans say they may not retire, or at least have limited confidence in how they can afford to retire.
But the Wells Fargo study takes that anxiety a step further, showing that Americans are so fixed on paying bills and keeping financially afloat that they can't afford to save for retirement. . . . ."
I'd reword that to Americans, after paying bills and keeping financially afloat, have no discretionary income to save for retirement. Those who have savings, are near retirement, and have followed the traditional advice of moving their money into conservative investments, find the interest earned isn't keeping up with inflation.